Running in Circles
by H2Ogirl
Summary: JessieKatie. Firsttime fic, well for me, but them too I guess... The girls meet during cross country season and it continues through their regular lives. If you run XC you know you have no real life until the season's over...
1. Chapter 1

As Jessie cut across the grass she heard a voice before she saw her,

"Listen…I don't care about this like she does. I mean, I'm just here because I love the team and I don't hate running. Danni is like in love with cross country, and besides, she wants to run in college. Who am I to beat her and take it all away from her?" She heard a mumbled response and the hushed voice continued,

"No, I told you, I'm totally fine. I couldn't look at Danni's face if I was the one who took away her last chance to run a high school cross country race. To me it's just running…to her it's life."

Their voices broke off Jessie walked out from behind the tree the two still sweaty girls were leaning on. She could hear one of them sigh with relief as she continued on past them. As she walked away, their voices faded.

"Just promise you won't say anything to anyone…"

Across the parking lot Jessie settled in between her bag and her friend Kaylee under the Panther's tent. She folded her arms across her knees and rested her head on them, thinking about what she had just heard. Those girls were from Oakridge High, a school just outside the city, and it sounded like one of them had just thrown the race for another runner. Maybe there was a good explanation, but for some reason the girl's voice stayed with her. Was it weird to want to know more? She had a few more thoughts to sort out, but was interrupted by a familiar voice.

"Earth to Jessie, did you leave something in the Hurricane's tent or something?"

Jessie blinked back to reality and turned to see Kaylee looking at her questioningly. Jessie shook her head quickly to clear her mind and realized that she had been unconsciously staring across the parking lot at the Oakridge runners' tent. She opened her mouth to answer, then thought better of it and shut it again. Mumbling something about the heat, she slipped on her headphones and resolved to find out whom this girl was as David Banner's voice pounded on her ears. After all, she went to a completely different school; it's not like it would matter anyway. Her brother always said her curiosity was her largest character trait, although he never conceded whether it be a flaw or a positive thing. She would merely be staying in character if she attempted to solve this new puzzle. Attributing the shaky, fuzzy feeling inside to David's lewd lyrics, she snuggled deeper into her sweatshirt and tried her very best to forget the girl's soft voice.

Katie smiled and laughed at all the right times during their cool-down and the JV race, but inside she was a little torn up. Looking at Danni's hopeful face, she knew she made the right decision to run behind her and push her to go faster over Lehigh University's 3.1 mile course. After all, this made Danni Oakridge's number seven runner and the last one to make the cut-off to run in the District meet the following week. Katie had been feeling great today, she was sure that she could have easily finished 5th for the Oakridge Hurricanes, but where would that have left Danni? Eighth, she told herself, that would have left her as the lucky runner number eight. Still varsity, but alternate. The Eight girl is the first girl who doesn't get to run. Katie held in a sigh and thought about how much Danni did over the summer and how hard she worked at practice. Danni wasn't the best, but boy did she want it the most. She was also the unluckiest when it came to injuries, and had been battling various hip and knee problems since the middle of sophomore year. Knowing that she had given Danni the chance to run in one last meet made Katie sit up a little straighter and, as she thought about how much Danni deserved it, her mood lightened ever so slightly. After all, she would run around the course just as fast if she was cheering as she would racing it. Katie corrected herself in her mind, _when_ she runs around the course cheering, not _if_. After all, her racing career was over.

"Maggie's number three in the girls' race!"

Julie shouted as she whizzed by to catch the runners at the next checkpoint. Katie smiled as the lithe girl sped off; Julie had been sick all day and still had energy after her own race to cheer on the JV girls. Katie decided to follow suit and catch up with Julie to cheer for the promising freshmen running over Lehigh's rolling hills.

She reached the corn field just as the first girl was coming through the clearing. Behind her was a Northampton girl whom Maggie was quickly closing in on.

"C'mon Maggie! That's the way, reel 'er in!"

The two Oakridge girls chattered at lightening speed as Maggie flew past and overtook the now struggling Northampton runner.

"Yeahhhh Maggie! Stay strong girl! Stride out and put some distance on 'er!"

After screaming like banshees at the next four Oakridge girls who ran by, Julie and Katie decided to work their way over to the finish in time to see Maggie bring it in. Julie loped off along the tree-line and Katie swung around to follow, which would have worked a lot better if she hadn't smacked right into another person. She righted herself and grabbed her victim's arm to help the girl avoid a rendezvous with the pavement. The blonde girl stumbled but managed to stay on her feet.

"Holy crap, I am so sorry!" Katie stammered.

The girl looked up at her after she was satisfied that the ground was staying where it should be. Her blue eyes got wide and she seemed taken aback for a second. Then she smiled weakly,

"It's fine, really. Sometimes I even have people run me over just for fun."

Katie couldn't help but laugh and quickly clapped a hand over her mouth. The girl's smile grew and she let out a nervous giggle. Katie dropped her hand and finally smiled back, until she realized she was still holding the girl's arm in her other hand. She released it and stepped back into another spectator. Her head whipped around and she shot the meaty man an apologetic look, he wasn't quite as nice as the girl in the Upton Sinclair sweatshirt and returned her nervous smile with a well-practiced scowl. Katie drew in a sharp breath and took a few steps closer towards the last casualty of her movements. The scowl man returned his attention to the race and Katie's head swiveled back around to the Upton Sinclair runner. As she prepared to apologize again, she noticed the girl's blue eyes were sparkling and she instead retorted in mock sarcasm,

"Oh sure, I'll just get eaten by the guy who spilled his coffee on his way here. But then you'll have to find another klutz to send you flying." The blonde girl's hand flew to her forehead,

"What will I do? I couldn't possibly stay on my feet for an entire afternoon, the earth would go spinning off its axis!"

Katie's eyes crinkled up, she liked this girl. As she opened her mouth to begin a verbal battle, Julie's voice forced her to turn around.

"Katie," she called, "come ON! I think Maggie can beat this girl!"

Katie shrugged apologetically,

"Maybe I'll see you at the football game. Generally my tackles hurt less if you're padded."

The other girl laughed and waved as Katie jogged towards Julie. Before she got out of earshot, Katie turned around impulsively. The girl had turned back around, but glanced her way when Katie spun around again,

"By the way, my name's Katie. I usually try to know a person's name before I attack them." The girl smiled again, Katie found herself thinking about what a nice smile she had.

"Jessie. I'm Jessie, and feel free to attack at will."

Katie grinned and spun around carefully before skipping over to catch up with Julie. In seconds Maggie had sprinted by trying to catch the swift, black girl just steps ahead of her. As the wave of runners streamed past, Katie saw and yelled for Alex, Kristen, Laurie, Brenna, and Victoria. Strange as it was though, the runner she couldn't get out of her head was not one of her junior varsity runners striding by her, but a slender blonde girl in a green and gold sweatshirt named Jessie.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2 

After all the runners had passed, even the slowest ones that would finish in thirty minutes plus, Jessie stayed rooted to the same spot on the ground. She flipped her hood over her head and tucked her hands inside the front pocket of her hoodie. The people who had been cheering around her had trickled away until it was just her and a jumpy squirrel checking out the acorns on the opposite side of the course lines. She looked over to the finish way off to the left and could see Katie's tall figure in her blue and maroon warm-ups. She could see that Katie was encouraging the runners, but she was not leaping about like the girls in blue and maroon beside her. She seemed subdued, almost unaware of the race around her. Jessie laughed to herself.

_What am I doing? I don't even know this girl, yet here I am intently studying her from afar. I'm starting to creep myself out. It's not like I like her or something…what is up with me today?_

Right as Jessie forced her eyes away from Katie's lanky figure, she felt an arm drop across her shoulders. She jumped and had to stop herself from punching the tall boy now suddenly standing next to her. He smiled and drawled,

"Oh Jessie, you needn't wait for me here. I would've met up with you back at the tent." On second thought, Jessie withdrew her earlier decision and socked him in his shoulder. He let go of her shoulders to gently rub his own.

"Don't flatter yourself Tad, I was trying to hide here until you were on the bus. Alas, the game is up, might as well go back to the team."

Tad's grin turned into a wince as she patted his newly wounded shoulder with vigor and trotted off towards the rest of the green and gold sweatsuits. Apparently convinced he wasn't permanently maimed, Tad chuckled and hurried to catch up with the feisty girl who packed more power than it seemed.

Before he caught up, Jessie chanced one more glance at Katie from Oakridge. When she found her, Katie wasn't looking at her or the race. She was looking at the spot where Jessie had been standing only moments hence. Before she could react, Katie's head turned towards her and their eyes locked. Jessie could feel the intensity radiating from the girl's green eyes all the way down into her stomach. Each helpless to break their stare, there was no way to know how long the girls would have remained locked to each other's eyes if it hadn't been for Tad bumbling to a stop right in between them.

"Jessie? Sorry to break your concentration, but the tent is another hundred yards that way," he said, pointing towards the distant clump of green and gold, "what are you staring at anyway..?"

Before he finished turning to look, Jessie had shut her jaw and grabbed his hand,

"Nothing! Thought I knew one of the old men, but you know they all look alike from this far away," she started off towards the tent once again, with a confused Tad in tow, "can't wait for that pizza! Boy am I starved…how many pieces do you think you'll eat?" Still rather lost, Tad stammered,

"Uh…I dunno, probably four?" Jessie nodded in agreement,

"Me too! Four pieces…I can't wait!"

She let go of his hand and started shoving her uniform and racing waffles into her duffel bag with wild abandon. Tad stood there in a slight shock, before coming back to himself,

_Four pieces? Is she nuts? She'll probably explode if she eats more than two. I don't think that Jessie's totally with it today._

He squinted back at the spot where Jessie's eyes had been fixed to, but the race had finished and the spectators were breaking up. Not seeing any old men, he shrugged and started to gather his own things into a pile that could be condensed into his obnoxious orange duffel bag.

Jessie watched him for a moment and, with a sigh, resumed her own war-zone clean-up. Not sure what to make of the foreign feeling dancing through her stomach and chest, Jessie did what she always did to forget her troubles: she slipped on her headphones and walked away.

As soon as the tall, dark-haired boy stepped between them, Katie sucked in a breath so deep the woman next to her patted her shoulder,

"Are you okay, dear?"

Katie squeaked out something resembling "yes ma'am" and wheeled around, fully aware of the possible consequences, with the sudden urge to be somewhere else. The somewhere wasn't anywhere in particular, as long as she put some distance between herself and the emotions that were just injected so forcefully into her ill-prepared body. She wasn't sure if she wanted to puke, scream, or pass out, but none of those options seemed appropriate for the current situation. She decided to get her bag and wait for the rest of her team on the bus.

Upon her arrival at the tent, Kellyann, a sophomore who was in the midst of a breakout season and had settled comfortably into the number four spot in today's race, tried to ask her about a suspicious pile of fake dog poop she found next to her bag, but Katie quickly cut her off,

"You're welcome! Enjoy it for tonight, but don't forget to pass it on!"

She scooped her bag up as the confused sophomore held the surprisingly realistic pseudo-feces in her palm. Smiling her patented Katie grin she waved at the stupefied runner while her legs carried her across the parking lot and grassy field to the first of two team buses. Swiftly selecting the girls' bus for the ride home, Katie boarded it like a refugee who had been offered a room in the Ritz. She collapsed into a seat, not even bothering to make sure it was her carefully selected left-side-third-from-the-back spot she staked claim on for every one of their previous cross country ventures. Pulling her knees to her chest, Katie closed her eyes and listed the state capitals in her head, twice. Somewhere between Carson City, Nevada and Columbus, Ohio during the third round, she managed to forget Jessie's blue eyes and fell into a light, restless sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

The next Thursday, Jessie sat in her pre-calculus class and tried not to stare at the clock above the door to freedom. Once she gave up that hopeless fight, her eyes glazed over and she didn't seem to move until the little hand brushed the big, bold number ten. Her hand flew to her bag as she stood up. Mr. Carhackee looked up from behind his computer screen. Jessie motioned to the door, then her bag, as she mouthed a silent explanation,

_I have a cross country meet. We have to be in the gym in ten minutes_.

She would have continued but Mr. Carhackee had already waved her away and focused his attention back on the computer screen. Jessie hoisted her sky blue bag over her left shoulder and nimbly navigated the aisle without clocking another student in the head with her duffel. She heard a heartfelt "Go Bears!" as she slipped out of the classroom, followed by a wave of laughter. Then with a small wave and a click of the door, she was able to enjoy a breath of untainted, math-free air.

Walking down the vast hallway by herself there was nothing to distract her from her thoughts except the flopping of her untied shoelace. Thoughts that began innocently enough about the afternoon's race led to thinking about last week's League Meet and, before she could stop them, to what she had spent the last seven days conciously _not_ thinking about: the Oakridge runner with the bright smile. Finally, for the first time since last Tuesday, Jessie relaxed her guard and allowed herself to think about Katie's face. She traced it in her mind's eye, starting with Katie's delicate jawline and moving upwards past her lips to brush across her sprinkle of freckles and gaze into her jaded green eyes. For some reason Katie's hair was blowing across her forehead, and Jessie reached out and rested her fingers against Katie's temple before brushing it behind her ear. Startled at how real the image and touch seemed, Jessie snapped back to reality and swallowed nervously before pulling open the locker room door.

As the heavy door shut behind her, she felt her heartbeat start to slow back down. Her thoughts were racing as the bewildered girl tried to sort out the foreign feelings invading her body and mind.

_Why does my body shake whenever I think about this girl I don't even _know_! I have a crush on Brien Ruyak, so why are these feelings coming from someone else…some girl? I don't like her, I've had three boyfriends since 8th grade._

But she couldn't deny that Katie twisted her insides up unlike any guy she had ever known. She'd only talked to her once, and been nearly knocked over, but other than that she had no experiences to draw from. She just knew how the mere thought of Katie made her heart race all on its own. By the time she pulled off her jeans to put on her running shorts, Jessie's heart had almost returned to normal…almost.

_It feels so right, but I know it's so wrong!_

As she chastised herself, Jessie decided that she had to forget these feelings. She would avoid Katie and eventually this chaos inside of her would subside. Then she could get on with her life…her completely normal life. After all, how hard could it be?

_She doesn't even go to my school, and aside from today, I'll probably never even see her again. It can't be impossible to avoid one person for one measly afternoon…_

As her teammates chattered around her Katie leaned her head against the cold, fogged-up window. Even though she could barely see it through the wet condensation on the window, she knew the rain was startign to pick up outside of the bus. It was colder than last week, but before her brain could analyze the racing conditions, she changed course to thinking about something else…anything else. After all, what did it matter about the weather, she wasn't running. She felt the seat shift and looked up to see Danni sitting next to her.

"I'm so nervous for today," the blonde girl started, "I'm scared to run, like, without you, ya know?" Her last statement turned into a half-hearted question. Katie mustered up a smile.

"Hey, how many times have we done this before?" She rubbed a spot on the window to clear a hole through the condensation, "Look out there…rainy, low fifties, cloudy. These are perfect racing conditions, you won't even feel the race. I know you'll do great."

Danni's face broke out into a smile. Leaning her head on Katie's shoulder, she breathed,

"You are so right, Katie. It'll be fine"

"Over before you know it."

"Piece of cake," Danni stood up and gave her a friendly pat on the shoulder, "I know everything's gonna work out. I just wish you were running too" Katie smiled up at her.

_You and me both._

Danni returned to her seat as the bus pulled out of the pick-up zone and started to pick up speed. Katie looked at Danni as she wiggled her headphones onto her ears. A feeling of peace settled on her body. She really did want to run, but she also knew this was what needed to happen. Danni needed this last chance…and maybe it was better that she was running on her own, without Katie pushing on her back. Feeling that things were a little more right than they were before Katie looked out the window again. It was cold and wet and dreary outside, but she would be hauling butt all around the course today. Her goal was to get a better workout than all of the girls who were actually racing. Suddenly aware, for practically the first time since Leagues, that as the number eight girl she could actually be running if something were to happen to one of the top seven, Katie brightened up when she realized that she was happy where she was. She was fine with not running, with being a teammate and not a star. Things were gonna be alright. Katie pawed through her bag to find her ipod, and after wiggling the ear-pieces into place, allowed the sound of Coldplay to carry her above the stormy rain-clouds all around her.

Fifteen minutes before the girls race was scheduled to start, the rain picked up with a newfound ferocity. Thankful that their tent at least had strap-up sides, the Upton Sinclair girls were silently doing some last minute stretching inside. Each girl stoically absorbed in her own world, they looked like a miniature army heading off to war. Well, a miniature army scantily clad in running gear and sporting a wide variety of portable music. They were all pretty damp from their warm-up run fifteen minutes ago, but didn't bother drying off with the knowledge that they would be back in the mercy of mother nature momentarily

"Ten minutes until the start of the AAA girls race!" blared the announcer's voice, barely audible over the ever-increasing howl of the rain and wind. Coach Johnson was briefly concerned about the conditions, but put on a brave face as the girls gathered around to go to the starting line.

"Girls," he started, "it looks bad out there. Hell it's gonna be crazy. But we like crazy. You don't have to beat this storm, all you gotta do is beat those other girls. Let them be worried about the rain. Then you can focus on schooling them! While they're pussy-footin' about the weather, just blow by 'em!"

With that the girls let up a cheer and one by one danced out into the squall. Coach Johnson clapped each girl on the back as she glided past. Jessie was the last girl out, and Coach held onto her shoulder for a brief moment. She paused and looked up into his wizened features.

"Today's your day, kid. If you want it…" he paused, seemingly about to say something else. Instead he shook his head and laughed ever so slightly. She waited for him to continue, and when he didn't, followed her teammates out of the tent.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Katie watched as her teammates lined up two deep on the starting line. Much like the end of the race, each girl's hair was already plastered to her face. Katie looked around. Not surprisingly, the spectators numbered less than usual for the District Championship. Of the people she could see, Katie noticed that she was the only one besides the coaches not wrapped in a raincoat and huddled under an umbrella. She turned her attention to the starter about fifty yards out from the line. She couldn't make out his words but she saw him lift his arms. When he dropped them seconds later, the two hundred girls in the AAA race moved off in a huge pack. Katie yelled for a moment and then set off to reach her next spot, the 1000-meter mark, before the leaders of the pack made it there.

Luckily, she had already mapped out her routes. The rain made it much harder to navigate her path, and if she didn't know exactly where she was going, she undoubtedly would have ended up in a neighboring county. As it was, she highstepped through one of the cornfields around the course and made it to her destination a minute before the leader reached it.

As the Easton girl lumbered past, Katie was surprised by how quickly the girl moved. She looked a lot like a dinosaur trudging along, but was obviously much faster than that. The girl had a twenty-meter lead and didn't look like she was letting up anytime soon. Katie thought, rather humorously, to herself,

_Well I guess the world is just full of surprises. Not to mention previously-assumed-extinct creatures…_

She forgot about Godzilla as more runners began to stride past. Oakridge's number one girl, Abby, ran by in fourth, followed closely by a blonde girl in a dark green uniform. As they drew closer, Katie started cheering for Abby.

"Yeah Abby! Great positioning so far. Keep it relaxed. You got this!"

As she drew in another deep breath, the other girl's face came into focus and Katie almost choked on the breath she had just drawn in.

_What the hell is Jessie doing on Abby's tail! I didn't even known she was good_!

She was speechless as these thoughts cascaded through her mind. The girls quickly passed in silence; as Katie looked on, Jessie's eyes flicked quickly up to her face before returning to a spot on Abby's back. She saw Katie and, Katie was sure of it, recognized her. Katie was still baffled by Jessie's appearance when Lindsay came by as their second girl in fourteenth place. She quickly snapped out of her thoughts and threw herself into her cheering. She counted as each of their girls ran past, Julie soon after Lindsay, followed by Kellyann, then Melissa and Erin together. When Danni passed by, she yelled louder than anyone else and happily noted that she seemed to be doing well before sprinting off to her next mark and 2500 meter point.

Despite wading through an ever-deepening puddle, breaking up a duck party, and nearly slipping into a massive mudpit, Katie still beat the leaders to the halfway point of the race. Dino-girl lunged past, her lead the same if not bigger. And sure enough Abby and Jessie only a minute later, this time running almost side-by-side. A weak "Go Oakridge!" was all she could muster as the pair drew closer. They were running almost in unison, except Jessie was sporting a barely visible…smile. Katie couldn't believe it, the girl was **smiling**!

_She's enjoying this! Unbelievable, she's racing her guts out, covered in water and mud, barely able to see through the rain, and smiling! This girl must be nuts…_

The last thought brought a smile to her own face. In the circles she ran in, she was known as the slightly crazy one. Always ready to try something new, go first, or take a risk, Katie had far more scars and stories than most of her friends. But as she watched this lithe, blonde girl running with her teammate, she noticed how this girl made a sport that was a step away from gruesome death look beautiful. Her hair was matted down to her forehead, but pushed away from her face from when Jessie had repeatedly wiped the rain out of her eyes. She obviously wasn't wearing any mascara, it was apparent on the girls that had because it was mostly running down their cheeks, yet Katie swore she could see the raindrops clinging to her lashes. Crazy, but those lashes stuck in her mind. Her thin green uniform was clinging to her body in all the right places, which in Katie's mind was everywhere. All at once Katie was grateful for the cold, drenching rain, well almost thankful anyway. It allowed her to stare unabashedly at this perfection, if unaccepted by her mind, was embraced by her heart.

Jessie was picture perfect. Her stride was smooth, her muscles in tune with the task at hand. Her run looked effortless and she seemed in tune with her whole being. Katie's heart felt like it was running a race of its own. At the last second, Katie was sure it wouldn't happen, but just as she was about to pass Jessie's eyes touched her own for the briefest of seconds. Katie caught her breath, and she was gone. As badly as she wanted her team to win, Katie found herself silently rooting for Jessie as she began to overtake Abby going up the slight upgrade of land.

Her funk was broken once again when her teammates came cruising by. She counted Lindsay, Julie, Kellyann, Melissa, Erin, and Danni all splattered in mud droplets as they carried themselves through the soggy halfway mark. She screamed a few encouragements to Danni, not even sure if she could hear her, and spun away to find the 4000 meter mark.

Absolutely exhausted from her 600 meter near-sprint across an open rolling field, Katie barely maintained her balance as she danced across a wooden bridge and strode up to the sign that let the runners know they were 1000 meters away from the finish line. As each runner passed, they would click off the fourth of five kilometers that had originally lay between themselves and their destination. From here, it was heart and guts that would determine who would run their race and who would give in to their demons. Luckily, the last kilometer led the runners in a rather large "U" shape and Katie would, if she ran quickly, be able to cheer for her girls and still make it to the finish.

Katie was still catching her breath when the Amazon warrior princess chugged by, and this time it was obvious that she had extended her lead on the poor second place girl, whose goal had changed from staying with her to keeping Godzilla in sight. Unfortunately for her, Katie saw that the girl-turned-machine was only now shifting gears and she knew that girl #2 would be promptly buried. Impressed as she was by Godzilla's performance, it was Jessie she found herself straining to see. And sure enough, when Abby and Jessie came into view, it was Jessie who was now a step ahead of Abby. Katie was in awe and tried her very best not to flat out gawk at the runner.

Without Abby's back as a target, Jessie's eyes had nothing to lock on to. When they were close enough to see each other's faces, Jessie's eyes left the ground and met Katie's own soft green stare. This time she didn't flick her gaze away immediately, but they held it. Jessie, because she could, and Katie, because she couldn't look away. Katie willed her mouth to stay closed until Jessie ripped away her stare to seek out her next course marker. When she found it she smiled, briefly met Katie's eyes, which had never left her own, and put a move on poor Abby.

Abby was helpless to stay with the loping girl, and Katie couldn't blame her, Jessie looked like this massive gear-shift hadn't even pained her. The gap between the girl in green and girl in blue opened in an instant and Katie wouldn't have been surprised if Jessie was gunning for the girl in third place, who was at least a hundred yards ahead of her.

The Oakridge girls streamed past, with the only change being Erin leading Melissa instead of Melissa half-stepping Erin. She yelled for Danni, and Danni actually seemed to respond by picking off the next two girls ahead of her. Katie watched proudly as she closed the gap on a struggling red and white uniform in front of her and grinned at her back.

Hauling butt to beat Godzilla to the finish, Katie made it there and squirmed between two of the Oakridge JV girls along the final hundred meter stretch right as the warrior princess steamrolled by to victory. Sure enough, second place rolled in more than a minute later in nineteen flat and third place only a step ahead of Jessie. Katie allowed herself a "Yeah Upton Sinclair!" as Jessie flew by, telling herself that Abby couldn't catch her now anyway. She was watching Jessie in the chute already patting the third place girl on the back and congratulating her on her race when Abby pushed through the finish line. Feeling guilty for not giving Abby one last cheer, Katie shifted her focus to the remaining six Oakridge girls as they charged the finish. Lindsay ran a personal record, Erin and Melissa finished so close even the judges couldn't decide on a victor, and Danni caught four girls coming up the homestretch. Aside from Abby being perplexed at the red girl (Jessie) schooling her the last kilometer, the Oakridge girls were psyched about their performance and those who could whooped around in the rain in celebration.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Katie couldn't have been happier for her team, and turned her face up into the rain as she spun around laughing. She was drenched and giddy when she heard,

"Isn't this something they put people in padded rooms for?" She stopped spinning and opened her eyes to see Jessie only feet away, still in her dripping uniform and holding a cup of water with her other hand resting on her hip. Her head was cocked to the side and that lovable smile was dancing on her lips. Katie giggled and wiped her matted brown hair away from her eyes,

"If they leave the roof off so I can see the sky…I don't care where they put me".

At this Jessie's half-smile became the full-fledged thing and she tried not to giggle like a schoolgirl. Katie, feeling empowered by this reaction, sidled closer to the svelte athlete and, leaning into her eyes, found herself in Jessie's personal space. Jessie leaned back ever so slightly, but didn't move her feet backwards. Katie grasped her shoulders,

"I know you saw me when you were running. You did **so** great. I had no idea that was in you". Jessie blushed and looked away,

"It was luck, I just felt really good today"

Katie raised an eyebrow at this and Jessie couldn't help but notice that such a little action made her stomach do cartwheels. What an odd, yet totally desirable feeling. But why was it this girl Katie who caused it? Jessie shivered, once because of Katie's gaze, but then again because her body had finally become aware of the wet and cold. After the second shiver, she couldn't stop. Her teeth started chattering and her arms quickly wrapped themselves around her. Katie's look of interest changed to one of concern in record time,

"Oh my god, you must be freezing!" Not knowing what else to do, she pulled off her navy "Oakridge Cross Country" sweatshirt and handed it to the chilled girl. At first Jessie shook her head no, but when Katie insisted and pushed it into her hands, she relented and tried to pull it over her head. Katie saw that she was struggling to get it on and reached over to help ease it over her arms and around her shoulders. Without really thinking about it she pulled the hood up around Jessie's head and tightened the strings to keep it in place. Jessie's lips were turning blue and her teeth chattering away, but her sky blue eyes never left Katie's face. Katie's arms wrapped around her own body now that she was only wearing a thinner long-sleeved tee. Rubbing her arms, she asked,

"So…where's your tent? You should probably get some dry stuff on…"

Jessie nodded and turned around looking for the blue and red striped top of her team's tent. She spotted it in the parking lot across from the bridge, nestled in between Northampton's orange one and Easton's red one. She tried to point at it,

"Over th-th-there. Be-be-tween th-the the r-r-r-red on-" but was cut off by Katie grabbing her extended arm and pulling her towards the bridge. Gratefully, Jessie stopped talking and allowed herself to be steered towards the shelter.

Safely across the bridge, Katie guided her towards the entrance flap of the tent and stopped her right in front of it. They faced each other and Katie looked in her eyes one more time,

"Are you okay now? You have warm stuff in your bag or whatever?"

Jessie nodded and shivered a little more. Katie smiled half-heartedly and pushed the popsicle of a girl into the tent. Wondering if she would ever see her sweatshirt again, but not really caring, Katie trudged off to find her own team's tent and drown the girls in praise. Starting to shiver herself, she hoped that Julie or Melissa might have thought to bring an extra dry sweatshirt or jacket.

Sitting in the tent, Jessie was finally wearing warmer, drier clothes, thanks to some help from Annie and Liz. She had smiled and graciously accepted everyone's praise for a race well run, but was quick to retire to a corner with a few of the other exhausted runners. Their common goal was to catch some sleep while the other races went on. Jessie turned up her music and closed her eyes while she snuggled into Katie's sweatshirt. It was so soft and smelled so good. For the moment, she allowed herself to enjoy her feelings and accept the emotions that Katie had somehow pulled out of her. As much as she tried to deny it, while the dry clothes warmed her body, it was thoughts of Katie that warmed her soul. Now warm and content, she breathed in Katie's scent and eased into a blissful sleep.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

The next few days at school went by in a haze for Jessie. Not because she was enjoying her education, but because she was sick for the entire week after Districts. In contrast to the strength and grace she felt during the race, Jessie now felt heavy and foggy from the morning when her alarm went off until night when she reset it before bed. Everyone felt bad for Jessie, but not as sorry as she felt for herself.

_I hate being sick…I can't even stay home because of all the work I'd have to make up. And to top it all off, the first person whom I've ever been unable to stop thinking about is a girl I don't even know who doesn't even go to my school._ She silently corrected herself_, not just a girl…Katie, but still I don't even know her last name. How pathetic am I?_

Cranky, hazy, and generally annoyed, Jessie plodded down the hallway to her next class, U.S. history with Mrs. Abbett. Knowing that she was already five minutes late and not caring, she made no effort to hurry her pace the last few meters to the door. As she opened it, she allowed herself a small smirk; no teacher had so much as scolded her for being late so far today. She must look sicker than usual. Mrs. Abbett was no exception,

"Good afternoon, Miss Sammler. I do hope you're feeling better soon. Now feel free to take your seat." The gray-haired woman nodded towards Jessie's seat on the far left side of the classroom and resumed outlining the Temperance Act on the chalkboard. Jessie shrugged at a grinning Tad, who was sitting in the center of the room, and made her way to her desk. Tad had texted her earlier, something about having some hot news. Jessie had retorted that he gossiped more efficiently than most of her girl friends, and his threat to keep his "big" news a secret had a minimal effect on her. Although her curiosity had been slightly aroused by his devilish grin, she was quickly losing focus on everything around her as Abbett's voice droned on about something involving alcoholic Puritans.

The bell jolted her out of her dreamlike state and she was surprised to see little runners drawn all over her notebook where her history notes should have been. She found where her pen had gone astray in the middle of her second line. What had originally been on the board as "…one of their many skills were sewing and crop gathering" had somehow morphed into "one of their many skatie katie katie" where her pen had met the notebook. She gasped and slammed it shut, quickly looking around to see if anyone had seen it. Fortunately for her, the only person looking at her was Tad, and he was waiting rather impatiently by the door.

"Good-bye Miss Sammler. Perhaps if you are still having symptoms tomorrow, you should consider spending the day at home resting in bed. Believe it or not, I think your schoolwork will fare better this way," Mrs. Abbett raised her eyebrow on the last statement, and Jessie blushed slightly before bee-lining it for the door. It was the fever messing with her head, and Jessie was becoming concerned about how this illness was apparently frying her brains. She smiled weakly at Tad before brushing past him to head to the cafeteria. He caught up a moment later,

"Jessie, get a load of this!" when she didn't slow down or turn around he tried to grab her shoulder, "really, have you heard-". He was cut off by Jessie angrily pushing his hand away,

"Tad, I am sick and I'm tired. I don't want lunch or gossip, I just want to find a dark hole to fall into so that I can put my head down for the next thirty minutes. If you get in the way of this dream, I swear I will not hesitate to cough on you." Tad looked stunned and hurt at the same time, his eyebrows furrowed together to compliment his shocked expression. Finally he closed his mouth,

"Fine…I guess we'll talk later." Then he swiveled around and walked away. Jessie felt momentarily sorry for her outburst, but reminded herself that he would be over it by next period and probably didn't have anything too important to say anyway. Maybe they had changed the cafeteria menu from chicken fingers to burritos for next Tuesday. Losing sight of Tad, Jessie continued on her search of a dark, unoccupied space to steal away in.

Jessie lifted her head from her folded arms a minute before her watch beeped to announce the end of lunch. It had been impossible to sleep, but she was thankful for the peace and quiet of the pool room. She had stretched out along one of the cleaner bleachers in the second row and closed her eyes. The heavy pool room doors had muffled the constant high school noises outside and she was comforted by the quiet sounds of the pool and the smell of chlorine in the air.

Annoyed that she still had one more class left, she dragged herself upright and decided against pulling the bag over her shoulder. Dragging it along the floor by one strap felt a little childish, but frankly, so did she. Satisfied as it thumped down the steps behind her, her mood was slightly more chipper as she pulled open the doors to the bright hallway. Her ounce of chipperness disappeared with the silence of the pool room and her headache returned full force, as if she was its long lost twin.

_All I have to do is survive Psychology. And then I can go home and sleep until tomorrow. And sleep. And sleep._

She tried to comfort herself with these thoughts, all the while knowing nothing would be better until the last school bell rang. She turned to go down the last hallway to reach room 501 and saw Tad talking to a girl that appeared to be halfway in her locker and losing the fight for her books. She was puzzled because usually Tad was in the other building for fourth block, she was almost positive he had pre-calc this period. Before her mind could work it out, the girl battling her locker showed a surge of power and flew out of the locker, book in hand.

"Ha," she exclaimed, "victory at last!" She raised her chemistry book in celebration, and Jessie's voice caught in her throat. When her heart jumped up to meet it, a small squeak escaped from her mouth.

"Oh hey Jessie," Tad started, "This is who I wanted to tell you about."

Jessie had already taken a step backwards and started to shake her head. Tad looked slightly confused by continued on,

"This is Katie, she's new… " Katie, book still hoisted in the air, turned around to see Jessie. But Jessie was already gone. Suddenly Psychology class was no longer an option. If she didn't get home **now**, some poor janitor would be cleaning up vomit from the sparkling floors of Upton Sinclair. She just hoped she could make it to the nurse before passing out.


	7. Chapter 7

"Um…I'm really sorry about that," Tad apologized, "I swear Jessie is like one of the nicest people I know. Honestly she's been kinda weird all week, and today even more than usual."

Katie was nodding along, but her mind wasn't with Tad anymore. She was trying to place that oh-so-familiar-name…Jessie…hmm…Her eyes flew wide as a sudden realization hit her. She was that runner girl who (still) had her blue cross country sweatshirt. When she found out she would be moving with her dad and transfering to Upton Sinclair, Katie had been thinking about getting to meet Jessie. But since all she knew were her race times and her first name, she hadn't held out much hope for getting too close. After all, she didn't even know what grade she was in. As a senior, Katie had a strict rule about being nice to underclassmen, but she couldn't actually bring herself to hang out with any freshmen outside of track practice. With Jessie's lithe frame and girlish features etched in her pretty face, Katie had no way of knowing what category she fell into.

_But why did she run away? She must have recognized me…at least a little?_

Tad noticed the concerned look fall over the girl's face, and mistakenly interpreted it as new school blues. He had already forgotten about Jessie and was relatively focused on making his mark with the striking new girl.

"If you're not sure where your next class is, I could probably show you…" he let the sentence fade on its own as he searched Katie's face for answers.

"What?…oh, no, I think I'm fine. English Lit is right downstairs, right?"

Somewhat disappointed that she didn't require any further guidance, Tad sighed and replied, "Yeah, that's right. Have fun with Mr. Peratt, he's intense."

_Intense? Nobody could be as intense as these past few minutes have been._

Instead of voicing her thoughts, Katie merely emitted the standard laugh and started off for the stairwell. Nearly forgetting about Tad, she turned around at the last second,

"Thank you so much for helping me out Tad," he smiled and blushed slightly, "maybe I could find you at lunch tomorrow or something?"

"Yeah, sure. Of course," Tad stammered, "I'll just wait outside your class…"

"U.S. History?"

"Yeah, I'll wait outside Abbett's room for you."

"Thanks Tad, I really appreciate it."

"It's nothing…you know, anytime."

"Can't you just wait until school is over? There's only one period left, Jessie."

"Ms. Hoskin, I'd rather puke in my own toilet…and then pass out in my own bed!"

"Well so far you've been here for ten minutes, and I've seen no signs of puking or fainting. Could it be that you're just upset about something, dear?"

"What? No, I've had a rotten day…but that's because I'm _sick_!"

"Why don't you go lie down until the final bell rings…I'll write you a pass out of class for today"

Jessie, seeing that this argument was going nowhere, muttered a weak "thank you" and lied down on the unforgiving leather lounge-like bed. She rolled over and faced the white wall. After a quick internal check, she sighed. Okay, so she wasn't sick anymore. But she had really thought she would throw-up for the minute that she raced down the hall away from Tad and that familiar new girl. Maybe she was hallucinating. After all, what would the girl that had been, literally, running through her mind all week be doing in the hallway of Upton Sinclair? She could definitely not be a student; if only for the reason that despite having not seen her since Districts, Jessie spent a majority of her free (and some of her not-so-free) time thinking about her concerned green eyes, about how her long body seemed to invite her to press her own against it, about how good her sweatshirt smelled…even after a week of being crumpled up on Jessie's bed.

Katie could not be here, because if she could turn Jessie's world upside down after two brief encounters, how would Jessie function with the possibility of seeing her anywhere or at anytime? She didn't know why she felt this way about this girl, but the battle inside her was exhausting and she was grateful to hear the bell that declared school was out for the day.

She smiled a tight-lipped smile at the nurse as she got up and gathered her bag. Ms. Hoskin waved back cheerfully,

"Feel better honey!"

Jessie sighed and rolled her eyes as she swung open the door to join the stream of kids rushing out of school. She wasn't sure if the woman was a wise mentor or more clueless than Tad. Thinking of Tad made her feel bad, for the second time that day, about how she had treated him. She resolved to apologize when she saw him in the morning and try her best to blame her seemingly fading sickness.

She stepped out into the brisk November air and wrapped her black pea coat a little tighter around her waist. After pulling her collar up to block the wind, she stuffed her hands in her pocket and studied the student parking lot for Grace's telltale purple jeep. It was like a hideous skyscraper among townhouses, but at least it was easy to spot. Usually, anyway…Jessie was having a difficult time finding it today.

_Figures…as soon as it gets cold out, Grace finds some new hidden parking spot._

"Hey…you wouldn't happen to be hiding a blue Oakridge sweatshirt under that coat, would you?" Jessie heard the cheerful voice drifting over from behind her. She turned around, with measured slowness, not knowing what she would say or do.

She was confronted with Katie's smiling face. Her neck was wrapped in a purple and green stripped scarf that almost clashed with her rosy cheeks. Her gloved hands were loosely gripped on her backpack straps and she was still walking towards a stone-still Jessie. Jessie's stomach dropped and her feelings became all too clear. For whatever the reason, this girl made her want to do cartwheels and sing and run away all at the same time. Over her shoulder, Jessie saw Grace's purple embarrassment to society fly around the corner.

"Uh…I am really sorry," Jessie blurted out as she sprinted past the confused girl. She booked it across the lawn separating the school from the street and practically threw herself into the jeep. Katie could only look on with confused disappointment.

"Oh joy…here you are," Grace greeted her with a sarcastic smile, "what's with the breathing?"

Jessie shot a look at her stepsister, "Just drive Grace."

"Whatever your Hormones Highness," Grace seemed peeved, but she did pull away from the curb with unexpected vigor. Her new snow tires squealed and Grace lowered her head in embarrassment.

"Thanks for that, and I blame you." Jessie let her rant and turned her attention to the window. She wasn't quite sure what was wrong with her…she knew she liked Katie. And the feelings would seem good if she weren't so afraid of them. So why did she feel the need to flee every time she saw her since their chance encounter at Districts? It wasn't a question she could answer with Grace yapping in her ear, so she forced it out of her mind and pretended to care what Grace thought about nothing.


	8. Chapter 8

Jessie spent the next three days avoiding Katie at all costs, or at least that's how it seemed to Katie. Even though they were in the same history class, as well as lunch, it seemed like by the time she had thrown her stuff into her backpack at the end of class each day, Jessie was long gone. Any other time, if someone acted like this towards her, Katie would become annoyed and forget about the person. It was usually easy, Katie was charismatic and fun to be around, she never had problems finding and keeping friends. Already, after less than a week of being at Upton Sinclair, she rarely found herself walking the hallways alone.

But with Jessie, she didn't feel like she could forget about her. Hell yeah, she was getting annoyed at the girl's disappearing act, but it was almost like it made her want to just grab the girl and force her to interact. Katie realized she had no intentions of letting Jessie go and the feeling surprised her. It was new, this deeper caring and constantly thinking about one person. But after three days, Jessie's blue eyes still haunted her before she opened her own eyes every morning. It was her blonde ponytail that she searched for among the sea of heads in the hallway between classes. And in history class, Katie's carefree yet consistent "A+" style of learning seemed to be suffering. Her thoughts were bombarded with observations about the blonde girl in the jeans and long-sleeved polo that sat two rows ahead and to the left of her. Every time she tried to focus on Lincoln's bills and policies, she was distracted by Jessie stretching her back or pushing her silky blonde hair behind her ears.

This was too much, and Katie decided that it wouldn't continue. She was sick of feeling like a lovesick puppy and was going to take action. Despite sensing that Jessie felt similar, she was nervous about pushing her further away. But she fought this worry by telling herself that, currently, it was impossible for Jessie to get any further away. By this afternoon, Jessie would be forced to face Katie one way or another. Katie had no idea what the girl's reaction or words would be, but she was willing to take anything over the current situation.

Feeling better about having made any decision at all, Katie returned her focus to her English professor pacing at the front of the room. While his ranting about T.S. Eliot seemed like it could be interesting, Katie figured she had already missed too much to get anything out of it anyway. She glanced at the clock and willed the last twenty minutes of school to go quickly. With her mind made up, she wanted to take action as soon as possible. Things couldn't stand still for too long in Katie's life and she was anxious to get some answers.

Looking around briefly before stepping out of the school doors, Jessie deemed it Katie-free and started across the yard to where Grace's eyesore sat in the lot. She was a quarter of the way across when she was jerked to a stop by someone holding tight to her backpack. As she whipped around to berate the attacker, her words died in her throat.

Katie caught a glimpse of her fiery glare before Jessie's blue eyes turned to the fear of a hunted deer. The fierceness in her eyes gave Katie courage and, without letting go of the girl's blue backpack, she started,

"I don't know why you're avoiding me-"

"Avoiding you? No, I'm not."

"Really? Because it seems to me that you bolt like a racehorse whenever I'm around."

"Don't be ridiculous…just because I haven't become a groupie-"

"A groupie?" Katie cut her off and had to stop herself from laughing. Encouraged, she leaned dangerously close to Jessie's ear,

"Do you want to be a groupie?" she breathed softly against Jessie's prickled skin.

Pulling out of a near trance, Jessie yanked her head back and hurriedly looked around at the students chattering and walking around them. She glared at Katie, not bothering to hide her venom this time, and pulled her around the corner of the building.

"What makes you think that?" she huffed, "I have enough going on in my life without needing to become one of your minions!"

To her surprise Katie just smiled, not at all the reaction she expected. Katie noticed her flustered look and decided to run with it,

"Then maybe I could be one of _your_ minions?"

Jessie was lost for a reaction, what was this girl doing to her? She waved her off and stuttered,

"M-m-mine?" She recovered quickly and brushed the offering away, "I don't want any minions, thank you very much."

Figuring things were going as well as she could hope, Katie said a lightning fast prayer and reached over to grasp Jessie's shoulders. Hoping with all her heart that she was interpreting the right vibe from Jessie, she leaned closer,

"Then maybe you want this…?"

She saw Jessie's blue eyes widen. Had they gotten bluer since she looked at them last? She couldn't answer the question because by now her own eyelids had dropped. Not knowing, but willing Jessie's eyes to do the same, she brought her lips down to where she hoped Jessie's were. Thankfully Jessie hadn't moved since she grabbed her shoulders and the landing was relatively smooth. Their lip-glosses made them slide around a little, but Katie wasn't aware of anything other than the fireworks going off in her brain.

Jessie's eyes closed and with the first touch of Katie's lips, she let go of her reservations and felt the kiss travel through her whole being. She forgot about being afraid and lost herself in the "rightness" of Katie.

Katie was aware of the pressure on her lips being returned by Jessie, and her smile broke the kiss when she felt Jessie start to lean into her. As the girls seperated, their eyes connected across the inches between them. Katie tried to read her emotions, but found her mind too clouded by her own. She only became aware of Jessie's hands on her waist when she took them away. She let her own hands fall away from Jessie's shoulders and they hung awkwardly at her sides for a moment. She opened her mouth to fill the silence, but Jessie was faster,

"What the heck am I doing?"

Instead of replying Katie laughed, and Jessie unconciously smiled. She had such a nice laugh, warm and friendly. A laugh that begged for others to join it. And Jessie did, cautiously. She started to turn away, but realized that it was the last thing she wanted to do. In fact, the only thing she did want to do was get as close to Katie as she could. It was a weird warm feeling that she decided not to turn away for once. Instead of leaving, she stepped one step closer to Katie's relaxed body.

Watching her turn away, then stop, then step back closer than they were before, Katie felt her feelings of apprehension slip away. Without them, all that remained was desire and courage. And her courage allowed the desire to take over. She leaned towards her shivering crush and hooked a chilled hand under Jessie's chin.

Their lips connected and a blissful warmness traveled throughout both girls' bodies. Katie forgot about her own cold hands as she became more distracted by Jessie's hands holding firmly onto her waist. The coldness of the air around them returned only as they pulled apart and became two separate people again. Jessie instinctively wrapped her arms around herself. She didn't seem to realize that she was softly biting her bottom lip as she stared at the ground between her and Katie. Katie sighed and Jessie made the mistake of looking up into her jaded green eyes. She cursed herself for her inability to control her racing heart and quickly shifted her sight towards the building, or the road, anywhere but Katie.

"I'm not... I can't...I don't know if this is okay..." she finally managed to get out. Jessie didn't want to sound like she was whining, or imply that she didn't like their kiss. Even she realized that wasn't something she could deny anymore. She tried again,

"I'm not sure what's going on right now"

Katie replied light-heartedly, "I know what's going on. I was right here...where were you?"

Jessie was too overwhelmed to appreciate Katie's humor. She finally made eye contact with the taller girl, causing Katie to forget about being witty and funny. She didn't feel like she could be much of anything when Jessie's eyes locked on her own.

"I think I have to go now..."

Katie tried not to look too disappointed. Obviously she wasn't very good at masking her emotions because Jessie's face softened. She opened her mouth as if to speak but apparently decided against it before shutting it again. Katie reached out and poked her softly in the shoulder with her index finger,

"What were you thinking just now?"

Jessie looked thoughtful, deciding if she should tell her the truth or not. After some lightning-fast internal debating, she dropped the walls inside of her slightly and replied,

"Just wondering if I'll see you tomorrow."

"Friday? Gee, I'm pretty booked up...maybe I could squeeze you in around noonish?"

Jessie swatted her with a well-disguised scowl, "Be serious for like two seconds!"

"How about two seconds around noon tomorrow?" Katie replied with an impish grin.

Smirking at her, Jessie turned on her heels and marched away towards the royal jeep with an increasingly impatient Grace at the wheel. From behind her she heard,

"Twelve it is! You're stuck with me now!"

Jessie smiled and even laughed quietly, but not loud enough for Katie to hear. She was thinking that as bad as it could make things for her, she wasn't sure if she minded being stuck with Katie...at least for two seconds at lunch tomorrow.


End file.
